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On the 100th Anniversary of Bay To Breakers: A TCM View on Running

Posted by Hae Min on 15 May 2011 | 3227 Comments

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I am not a runner now, but before I started training in martial arts, I ran for over ten years almost daily. I started in high school when my friends started doing it to get into shape. I hated it at first. My lungs hurt, my stomach hurt, my face would get really hot, my body seemed to be saying "yuck!" but I kept at it because I was convinced that running was something that fit people did. I started out jogging really slowly and going for 15 minutes at a time. Eventually I worked up to 20 minutes and so on, until I could easily run 45 minutes to an hour. That seemed like the optimal time for me. I never ran with the track team. It almost didn't even occur to me to go fast or to run for time. I just liked the motion of it, trying to get my body into a better rhythm and connect with the ground in the smoothest foot exchange possible. I was also taking dance classes at the time, so I was hyper-aware of posture, stretching, and the importance of not heel-striking as I ran. Eventually I was hooked. I ran every day, sometimes twice a day, rain or shine, wind or hail. I usually ran first thing in the morning, but sometimes I was foolish enough to run in the midday sun. It felt exhilarating. 

 Then one in my sophomore year of college, I strained my hamstring and groin muscles. It took me fully six months to recover. As soon as I recovered I went back to running every day, 3 to 4 miles a day in the mornings along the cliffs in Santa Cruz. At some point, I developed severe skin rashes every time I tried to go running, no matter how many layers I wore or how much lotion I used on my skin. The rashes were not just itchy but painful, unbearable. The final straw was when I got a severe kidney infection that almost put me in the hospital. That finally got me to stop. Around this time, I got interested in martial arts again and started training several times a week for several hours per class. That's when I first learned that in Traditional Chinese Medicine, running is considered "not good for one's health." I had never heard of this concept. 

In Chinese Medicine, health and fitness are not just gaged by how trim you are and how many exercises you can do, it's measured in terms of overall balance, and the health, strength and resilience of all your body processes. Running is considered bad because it can be hard on your bones, joints, kidneys, and back. In my case, I would say that it made me healthier and then it made me sick. I did not take enough care to drink water when I went on longer runs, eventually leading (I suspect) to my severe kidney infection. I was draining my adrenals or mingmen fire, causing liver blood deficiency and internal wind rising up to the skin level. I noticed that my knees had a gritty sound when I would bend my knees. And my low back started hurting. All of these were signs to me that the years of running had taken quite a hefty toll. 

 So why am I doing Bay to Breakers? First of all, I'm going to fast-walk it with a friend. Great exercise, much less wear-and-tear on the muscles, bones and joints. Secondly, I am only walking half of it, going from Cole Valley to Ocean Beach and Back. I still enjoy running once and a while for fun, just so see if I can still do it and to feel that totally free exhilarating feeling again. Mostly I like to sprint short distances, but sometimes I will go on longer runs, especially if my friends want to run with me. 

 Although I can see now why running was bad for me, I was clearly not being smart in the way that I ran. I didn't carry water with me, I ran on asphalt instead of grass or sand or a track, I stretched cold in the mornings, I ran every day instead of letting my muscles rest, and I ran without a set training goal in mind. Even if I had done everything correctly, however, I don't think running daily was a good idea for me and my body's constitution; doesn't mean I didn't love every minute of it and that I'm not still trying to do a certain amount of running as one of my physical activities. 

 So what's my point. I think running can be great exercise and very helpful for transitioning from a sedentary lifestyle but only if you treat your body with respect and run smart. Drink water and electrolytes to replenish yourself, stretch after you are warmed up, run on softer surfaces, train yourself to transition the footfall exchange so you're not pounding the ground with your joints and spine, take rest days in between running, set reasonable training goals and when you plateau, do interval running to keep challenging yourself, cross-train with other activities like yoga, pilates, taiji, qi gong, swimming, tennis, volleyball, etc. Make sure your body gets to rest and relax as much as it gets to move around and be challenged. Get bodywork and chiropractic care regularly to keep your body in good shape. Wear orthotics to balance out any difference in leg-length and problems with the arches. Get your running analyzed by a professional who will videotape you running, and explain to you how to improve or optimize your posture, stride, cadence, rhythm, and breathing. And last but not least, consider which running shoes, if any, would be best for you. I highly recommend wearing flat shoes or Vibram Five-Fingered Shoe or trying barefoot running. Check out Vibram's here on Tim Ferriss' blog: http://www.fourhourworkweek.com/blog/2009/05/07/vibram-five-fingers-shoes. Also check out Christopher McDougall's site: http://www.chrismcdougall.com/ and read his book Born to Run, which chronicles his investigation into barefoot running. If you're not that fancy or brave (San Francisco has a lot of glass and other sharp objects on the road), I really like to run in Pumas; they are very flat, but still supportive and conform well to your foot. And if you're already injured or want to prevent running injuries, build qi and improve your performance, check out this site: http://www.chirunning.com/.

 Ok. Now to bed. Bay to Breakers tomorrow. I hope I can follow all of my own advice. Good luck everyone! Bring rain gear, sunscreen, a hat, and your own good sense about what's right or not for your body. Happy walking and running everyone!

 


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